(May 20, 2008)—News 10 was told, Monday by sources, that the Hillcrest Health System and Scott & White Hospital will soon begin discussing the framework of a deal that would give Scott & White control of some percentage of Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center.

Those same sources say talks are in the early stages and no deals are yet in place.

The talks are to take place over the next couple of months, with the intention of establishing a deal sometime before the end of the year.

The information comes out less than a year before Hillcrest is set to move into a new multi-million dollar complex near Interstate 35 and South Loop 340.

Neither Hillcrest nor Scott & White would comment Monday, but Hillcrest has scheduled a news conference Tuesday afternoon to “announce the prospects for a new medical partnership that will continue the legacy of quality health care in Central Texas for years to come.”

The talks are the latest development in an ongoing series of agreements and acquisitions involving Scott & White.

Last month, King’s Daughters Clinic became the latest area provider to join the Scott & White Health Plan.

King’s Daughters Clinic has facilities in Killeen, Belton and Temple.

In August 2007, Hillcrest and 45 Hillcrest physicians joined the Scott & White Health Plan’s provider network and Scott & White confirmed it was in talks it hoped would lead to the acquisition of a third-interest in Killeen’s Metroplex Hospital.

Metroplex is operated by the Adventist Health System and includes both the 213-bed hospital in Killen as well as the 25-bed Rollins Brook Community Hospital in Lampasas.

Also in April, Scott & White took over responsibility this month for managing the Llano Memorial Healthcare System, including the 30-bed Llano Memorial Hospital.

The Llano County Hospital Authority Board will continue to govern the hospital.

Scott & White and Lake of the Hills Regional Medical Center reached an understanding in April 2007 and were ironing out details of a jointly owned and operated 120-bed acute care hospital.

Lake of the Hills Regional Medical Center is the non-profit entity the Llano County Hospital Authority created to build and operate the hospital.

It discussed the project with more than 20 potential partners before deciding on Scott & White.

The Lake of the Hills Regional Medical Center will be the centerpiece of the Crossroads Regional Medical Campus at the intersection of Highways 281 and 71 just south of Marble Falls, Scott & White said.

Click Here For King’s Daughters Clinic Web Site

Click Here For Scott & White Health Plan Web Site

Click Here For Metroplex Health System Web Site

Click Here For Hillcrest Web Site
___
Eli Ross contributed to this story.